This article reports the findings of in‐depth interviews with security managers from some of London’s top hotels. What emerges is a range of different approaches to executing security policy. Key issues are identified in relation to the balance between providing hospitality and security, the degree of overt security, and the contribution that security staff make to the success of the business. Whilst there is a shift away from a focus on security against criminal threat towards broader concerns with health and safety, these hotels have not yet adopted the loss prevention strategies developed in the USA.